THE new album from Just Mustard went Top 20 in the charts and picked up substantial positive reviews for the Dundalk band.
Pitchfork gave it 7.7 saying, “the Irish shoegaze band plunges into darkness on its brilliantly textured second album, led by the eerie vocals of Katie Ball. NME gave it five stars, 9/10 from Hot Press and 8/10 from Clash.
Heart Under, Just Mustard’s second album and first for Partisan Records, is an album that asks you to forget what you know. At every turn, this remarkable record reconfigures and stretches the ideas and ambition of a rock band, and turns a year of lockdown and personal struggles into a breathtaking artistic statement.
Across its ten tracks, the album presents a coherent style and ethos – those scything guitars, Katie’s magical vocals – but still incorporates a wide and untethered vision. There are brooding, atmospheric rock songs (“Still”, “In Shade”) and others that apply a lighter, dreamier touch (“Sore”, “Mirrors”), all tied together with impeccable instrumentation and a united vision. On Wednesday, the band played with dreamier soundscapes and production techniques, and Heart Under served as the next stage of this development, with every instrument brilliantly pushed to its limit and every boundary of the band stretched.
The group consists of vocalist Katie Ball, guitarists David Noonan (also backing vocals) and Mete Kalyon, bassist Rob Clarke and drummer Shane Maguire. Their brilliant 2018 debut album Wednesday earned acclaim at home and abroad, most notably capturing a Choice Music Prize nomination for Irish Album of the Year.
Just Mustard play Dolans Warehouse this Thursday July 28.
